The present disclosure will make use of the rules for a popular game called Beer Pong as an exemplary game that may be played with the disclosed devices and methods; however, those skilled in the art will recognize that the presently disclosed devices and methods will find utility in the play of a great many other games having rules of play that differ, either slightly or completely, from the rules of Beer Pong. To give just one non-limiting example, a popular game known as “Quarters” may also be played with the disclosed devices and methods. The devices and methods disclosed herein are therefore intended to also relate to such other games and rules of play, whether now known or hereafter developed.
Beer Pong (sometimes alternatively known as “Beirut”) is a drinking game in which players throw a table tennis ball across a table with the intent of landing the ball in a cup of beer or other drink at the other end of the table. The game typically is played by a pair of two-to-four-player teams. As shown in FIG. 1, the gaming surface consists of multiple cups 10 arranged on each end of the table 12, with the cups 10 set up in triangle formation. There are no official rules, so rules may vary widely, though usually there are six or ten plastic cups 10 arranged in a triangle on each side of the table 12. All of the cups 10 are filled with an amount of beer (or other drink). Players from each team take turns attempting to throw or bounce a table tennis ball into the cups 10 arranged at their opponent's end of the table 12.
There are very few universal or “official” rules for the play of Beer Pong. Typically, players abide by a uniform set of “house rules”, which are often consistent within one university or region of the country (e.g., “Ivy League rules” or “West Coast rules”), or may vary on a “house-by-house” basis. The number of cups 10 used on the game surface 12, requirements to bounce the ball when making a shot, the amount of alcohol in a cup 10, the distance shots must be taken from, etcetera, may all vary.
In some house rules, players must immediately drink the contents of any cup 10 on the players' side of the table 12 into which a ball has landed. Failure to do so incurs a penalty, such as drinking more beer or even losing the game. Some rule sets allow for “re-racking” (also known as “rearranging”, “consolidation”, and other names), which is a rearrangement of a team's remaining cups 10 after some have been removed. The initial formation of the cups 10, the number of cups 10, when to rearrange the cups 10 and so on depend on the particular rule set being used. For example, in some rule sets a team with three remaining cups 10 may ask the other team to “re-rack” their multiple targets into a single triangle formation. Formations for several different numbers of cups are illustrated in FIG. 2.
In some instances, the losing team (i.e. the team that has been forced to drink the contents of all of the cups 10 on that team's end of the table 12) must consume all of the beer remaining in the winning team's cups 10. The order of play varies—both players on one team may shoot followed by both players on the other team, or players on opposite teams may alternate back and forth.
The cups 10 are normally used throughout a session of play and therefore are likely used by multiple players to consume their contents. Such sharing of the cups 10 increases the risk of the transmission of communicable diseases. It has been previously recognized that there may be a transmission of germs into the drink when the ball lands in the cup 10. The ball has been handled by all of the players, and has also been in contact with the playing surface of the table 12 and usually the ground surface under the table 12, and is therefore far from sanitary. Many Beer Pong games make provision for a wash cup 14 so that the player may dunk the ball into water in order to wash off the ball prior to making a shot.
Even with such precautions, Beer Pong may have several health issues associated with it. Beer Pong, as with any activity involving alcohol, may cause players to become intoxicated or even drunk enough to get alcohol poisoning. Especially in commercial bar settings, it is difficult for bartenders and wait staff to monitor alcohol consumption because beer is brought to the table 12 communally. Also, the supposed cleaning effects of the water wash cup 14 may be offset by the uncleanliness of the wash cups 14 themselves, making the provision of wash cups 14 actually worse than having no wash cups 14 in some cases. Research has shown that the wash cups 14 themselves hold bacteria, such as E. coli. In early 2009, news sources cited a recent study by the U.S. Center of Disease Control (CDC) that stated that Beer Pong was contributing to the spread of herpes, mononucleosis, and other diseases through shared cups. Recently, there have been reports of the transmission of swine flu through the cups 10 used while playing Beer Pong. Additionally, the U.S. National Institute of Health (NIH) recommends avoiding the sharing of eating and drinking utensils to prevent the transmission of certain contagious viruses such as herpes.
Therefore, there is a need for improved devices and methods for the play of Beer Pong and other games that utilize cups and balls. The present disclosure is directed toward meeting this need.